An act to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 with respect to the tax treatment of periodic payments for damages received on account of personal injury or sickness, and for other purposes.
Public Law 97-473 · H.R. 5470 · 97th Congress · began in the House
Signed by Ronald Reagan (R) on Jan 14, 1983 · Taxation
Sponsor: Rep. Andrew Jacobs (D-IN-11)
Cosponsors (4): Rep. Kenneth Holland, Rep. Frank Guarini,
Passage votes
- HouseVoice vote
- SenateVoice vote
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
Title I: Income Tax Provisions - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an income tax exclusion for damages for personal injuries or sickness whether the damages are paid as lump sums or as periodic payments. Provides that any amount received for agreeing to assume damage liability shall be excluded from gross income if it is used to purchase an annuity contract issued by any State-licensed insurance company or a U.S. obligation to cover the liability.
Excludes from gross income difficulty of care payments made to a taxpayer for care of a handicapped foster child. Excludes from gross income basic foster care payments made to reimburse foster parents for the care of foster children.
Title II: Tax Status of Indian Tribal Governments - Indian Tribal Governmental Tax Status Act of 1982 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to treat an Indian tribal government as a State for purposes of: (1) determining the deductibility of a charitable contribution made to such tribe; (2) certain excise taxes; (3) deductions for State and local taxes; (4) the unrelated business income tax applicable to colleges and universities; (5) the credits for public retirement system income and contributions to candidates for public office; (6) the exclusion from gross income of certain scholarships and fellowship grants and contributions of certain employers for employee annuities; (7) the tax on excess lobbying expenditures by public charities; and (8) the tax treatment of activities of private foundations.
Excludes from gross income, under specified circumstances, interest on industrial development bonds issued by an Indian tribal government. Specifies that the excise tax exemption and tax-exempt bond financing shall only apply to transactions involving an essential governmental function of an Indian tribal government. Disallows tax-exempt financing of private activities with industrial development bonds, scholarship bonds, and mortgage subsidy bonds. Defines "Indian tribal government" for the purposes of this Act. Excludes certain Alaska natives from such treatment.
Sets forth effective dates for the provisions of this Act .
Title III: Amendments to Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to waive the preemption by such Act of the Hawaiian Prepaid Health Care Act, thereby allowing Hawaii to continue its prepaid health care law.
States that such preemption shall not apply to any State tax law relating to employee benefit plans or any amendment to the Hawaii Act enacted after September 2, 1974.
States that this Act shall not be considered a precedent for extending the exception to preemption to other States.
Authorizes the Secretary of Labor to enter into cooperative agreements with the State of Hawaii regarding preemption. Directs the Secretary to study the feasibility of extending the exemption to other States.
Redefines "multiple employer welfare arrangement" for purposes of State and Federal regulation of health trusts.
Defines the extent to which State laws are preempted by ERISA with respect to multiple employer welfare arrangements.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
Ways and Means Committee · House · markup by, referred to, reported bySubcommittee: Tax Subcommittee
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 29 actions.
- Jan 14, 1983Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 97-473.
- Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- Jan 3, 1983PresidentPresident · Presented to President.
- Dec 22, 1982Resolving differencesResolving differences · Senate agreed to conference report by Voice Vote.
- Resolving differencesResolving differences · Conference report agreed to in Senate: Senate agreed to conference report by Voice Vote.
- Dec 21, 1982Resolving differencesResolving differences · House Agreed to Conference Report by Voice Vote.
- Resolving differencesResolving differences · Conference report agreed to in House: House Agreed to Conference Report by Voice Vote.
- Resolving differencesResolving differences · Conference Report 97-984 Filed in House.
- Resolving differencesResolving differences · Conference report filed: Conference Report 97-984 Filed in House.
- Resolving differencesResolving differences · Conferees Agreed to File Conference Report.
- Resolving differencesResolving differences · Conference committee actions: Conferees Agreed to File Conference Report.
- Dec 18, 1982Resolving differencesResolving differences · House Agreed to Request for Conference and Speaker Appointed Conferees: Rostenkowski, Gibbons, Pickle, Duncan, Frenzel.
- Resolving differencesResolving differences · House Insisted on its Amendments to the Senate Amendment.
- Dec 17, 1982Resolving differencesResolving differences · Senate requests a conference. Appoints conferees. Dole; Packwood; Wallop; Long; Byrd, of VA.
- FloorFloor · Senate disagreed to the amendment of the House to the Senate amendment to the text. By Unanimous Consent.
- Dec 13, 1982Resolving differencesResolving differences · House Concurred, in Senate Amendments , with Amendments.
- Oct 1, 1982FloorFloor · Passed Senate with amendments and an amendment to the Title by Voice Vote.
- CommitteeCommittee · Reported by Senate Finance Committee
- Sep 28, 1982CommitteeCommittee · Markup by Senate Finance Committee
- Sep 23, 1982CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Senate Finance Committee
- Sep 20, 1982FloorFloor · Passed House (Amended) by Voice Vote.
- Sep 16, 1982CommitteeCommittee · Reported by House Ways and Means Committee
- Sep 15, 1982CommitteeCommittee · Markup by House Ways and Means Committee
- Jul 12, 1982CommitteeCommittee · Reported by Tax Subcommittee of the House Ways and Means Committee
- CommitteeCommittee · Markup by Tax Subcommittee of the House Ways and Means Committee
- Jun 14, 1982CommitteeCommittee · Hearings by Tax Subcommittee of the House Ways and Means Committee
- Apr 20, 1982CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Tax Subcommittee of the House Ways and Means Committee
- Feb 8, 1982CommitteeCommittee · Referred to House Ways and Means Committee
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in the House
Data notes
Shows the introduction, each committee and subcommittee step the source dates (referral, hearings, markup, report, discharge), and the floor, conference, presidential and became-law steps. Calendar placements, messages between the chambers, amendments and committee report numbers are not shown for laws before the 108th Congress. Two entries the source lists twice are shown once.
Official record
The bill’s full text and every action, including introduction and committee steps, are on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.